Twist of Fate: Blessings of the Sky Spirits
by whoa nellie
Summary: Chakotay experiences the most unique vision quest of his life.


Originally posted 1/12/01

Title: Blessings of the Sky Spirits  
Author: Whoa Nellie  
Series: Voyager  
Rating: PG-13  
Codes: Chakotay / f  
Synopsis: Chakotay experiences the most unique vision quest of his life.

Authors' note: Knowing next to nothing about Native-American traditions, we did hours of research. Then we promptly made the stuff up.

Blessings of the Sky Spirits is the first story in the Twist of Fate universe. This is an edited down version of the original. If you are 18 or older and would like to read the original version, it can be found at Whoa Nellie's Sci-fi Romance website. The link can be found at our author page.

As always: Paramount owns all the marbles. We just have a lot more fun playing with them.  
Feedback is always appreciated.

BLESSING OF THE SKY SPIRITS

"Akoochimoyah, I am far from the sacred bones of my ancestors," Commander Chakotay began the familiar chant, seeking guidance from his animal spirit to understand the strange restlessness he had been feeling as of late. As he continued the chant, holding the akoonah, the room began to swirl and he started the familiar descent into the trance that transported him to the spirit world.

Chakotay looked around the forest setting, he didn't see his animal spirit immediately. This wasn't a big surprise, since his animal spirit was a part of him, it could be as contrary as he was prone to be about things. He noticed that he was in more traditional garb than he usually wore in his vision quests. He was shirtless, wearing only trousers and old-style moccasins. He began to walk, seeking solace in the forest. He was following a faint path through the undergrowth when the trail suddenly ended and he found himself at a village. He had seen this place before, on a deserted planet in the Delta Quadrant, far from the lands of his ancestors. It was the village of the Sky Spirits. He entered the village, welcomed by those dwelling there with a simple smile and a nod of greeting. In the center of the village, sitting cross-legged with several others, Chakotay was startled to see Kolopek, his father.

"Ah, Chakotay, we have been waiting for you." Kolopek rose to greet his son.

"Father, " Chakotay began. "You honor me with your presence, but . . ."

"But you do not understand." Kolopek smiled and patted his son's shoulder. "I know, and I will explain. Please, sit."

Chakotay joined the circle of men sitting around a small fire. He had so many things he wanted to say to his father, so many questions to ask. He didn't know where to begin. He hoped that there would be no red alerts tonight. It was so good to see his father again that he wanted this vision quest to last as long as possible.

"Ah, my son," Kolopek began, smiling broadly. "It has been a long time, no?"

"A lifetime," Chakotay sighed.

"You have always been a contrary one, my son. Even in the moment you were entering the world, you were determined to make your own way. I have heard your thoughts and prayers. You have done something which I was convinced was not possible. I told you once that if you turned your back on our people, our ways; that you would be a part of two worlds but belong to neither. Yet you, my contrary son, you have proven me to be wrong," Kolopek paused to chuckle at his thoughts.

"No, Father, you were right. If I had not turned my back on my heritage, things would have been so different." Chakotay had long been tortured by guilt at not being with his parents, his people, at Treban when they were massacred.

"Your death would not have changed what happened to us. Your life has carried on our heritage. We live through you, Chakotay."

Chakotay was stunned. After years of remorse, his father cut to the heart of the matter with one sentence. He had never felt that he would be able to atone for the attitudes and decisions of his youth. Yet, here was his father not the least bit angry for what Chakotay had always felt was his biggest betrayal.

"But that is not the purpose of this day, my son," Kolopek continued. "This day is to commemorate you, your journey. " At Chakotay's confused expression he rested a hand on his son's shoulder. "You have come full circle in your journey. In your youth you rejected our ways, your heritage. You embraced a different life. On your path has been many trials, many obstacles both physical and spiritual. You have met them all and grown stronger from it. You began to explore and embrace your heritage, our ways, in your own time. You have found a way to embrace your past, live in the present and look to the future without giving up any of yourself. I had not thought it was possible to live in both worlds, but you, my son, you have managed it. You embody everything good about our people, our way of life, and yet you live in the modern world among other peoples and cultures. You keep one foot in each world without falling," Kolopek paused and turned his gaze to meet Chakotay's. "I am very proud of you."

Chakotay felt a great weight lift from him. He had longed to hear those words from his father for so long, he couldn't imagine any gift more precious. He couldn't speak for the emotion, but he conveyed his gratitude just the same. He shared a long look with his father that spoke volumes and resolved every problem that had ever been between them.

"Now, my son," Kolopek reached out and traced Chakotay's tattoo before turning back to his story. "The reason I am here now is that it is time your solo journey ended. In the darkness, before there was anything, life was just an essence. The Great Spirit, in infinite wisdom, split the essence of life into two pieces. Our journey in life must begin with a discovery of the part of life's essence that we are; but it must end with finding and joining our other half. We cannot be complete alone. You have been alone too long, my son. Your journey has been hard, but you now utterly and completely understand your spirit."

Here he paused and took a drink from a cup in front of him. "If it were in my power to send you home so that you could seek and find your true soulmate, I would. Since I cannot, I have asked for, and the Sky Spirits have granted, a blessing to you. They will bring the other half of your soul to you. In fact, she is already here. The ceremony will begin shortly." He gestured and food and drink were brought over for the men.

As they were eating, Chakotay looked around. Perhaps this vision quest was exactly what he had needed to quell the restlessness that had consumed him lately. There certainly seemed to be a sense of completion filling him. He was curious about the woman that his father had mentioned. His track record with women had not been that good as of late: first Seska, that was abysmal and difficult to even think about; there had been something with Kathryn, but their situations created barriers and it had never really seemed 'right' somehow; then Kellin, although all he had of her was some notes written on a piece of paper -- not even a memory, and then the female 8472 that he had met on their Starfleet simulation. He closed his eyes briefly and placed his trust in the wisdom of the Sky Spirits, they certainly couldn't do worse than he already had. Hopefully this ceremony would give him a wholeness of spirit that he could carry with him out of the vision.

A short time later, the men rose and Kolopek directed Chakotay to follow with them. They walked in silence to the shaman's tent a short distance away. He was standing in full ceremonial dress uttering ritual prayers. It was then Chakotay saw her. She was in front of the shaman, just to his right. She was wearing a dress of pure white with matching moccasins. Idly, Chakotay studied the dress, trying to determine what animal the skin had been taken from. His eyes moved up her slender figure, across the feminine curve of her hips. Her waist indented slightly and the dress accented it with a belt cinched with an exquisite buckle of what appeared to be turquoise. Further up, her breasts swelled beneath the modest neckline of the dress. Suddenly, all other thoughts fled. He looked into the most beautiful brown eyes he had ever beheld. The universe seemed to be reflected in those eyes. They shone with the wisdom of the ages yet sparkled with the innocence of youth. They held understanding of all that was dark in the universe yet expressed all that was good. For an eternal moment, Chakotay was lost in those eyes.

The words of the shaman shook him out of his reverie. "In the beginning, all the universe was divided; masculine and feminine, good and evil, darkness and light. In this way, all of the universe must co-exist. It cannot exist without balance. As it is with all life, we begin our journey alone. Each of us has a path to walk that no other may walk, each path is separate. Yet we cannot always walk our path alone. In order to be complete, we need to find our other half. Today, two halves will become a whole. You have both walked your paths alone. Do you wish to join those paths now, do you wish to continue your journeys as one?"

The young maiden demurely gazed up at Chakotay, gracing him with a gentle smile. Her long, black, silky hair cascaded past her shoulders to frame her lush lips and the flutter of her dark lashes. Her delicate features were highlighted by the warm, tawny color of her satiny skin. She turned back to the shaman and nodded her head once, yes.

The shaman turned to Chakotay who also nodded yes.

Satisfied, the shaman continued. He held in each of his hands, a small ring. " A perfect circle, no beginning, no middle, no end. In this is the journey that we each must make. The path we walk has no beginning, it was there before we existed. The path we walk has no middle, it is ever changing, ever growing. The path we walk has no end, our existence may cease, but the path remains and the changes we make to our path along the way remains behind to mark our time upon it. I give each of you a symbol of your paths."

When the shaman stepped forward, the maiden held out her left hand, palm up to accept the ring that he placed there. Chakotay followed her example, holding his left hand out, palm up to receive his ring.

The shaman stepped back and continued the ceremony. "To decide to share one's life does not mean that you share the same path. There must be spaces in your togetherness that you remain the sum of all that you have experienced before. You each hold your path in your hand. To become one life out of two halves is to intertwine, to interconnect your paths with another. If that is your desire today, do so now."

The beauty stepped closer to Chakotay and held her left hand up carefully to keep the ring in its place on her palm. She met his eyes and again he was rocked by the intensity that he saw there. He moved closer to her and brought his left hand up. They joined their hands, rings clinking together. The shaman bound their hands together with a leather strap. Suddenly, the intensity that Chakotay had sensed flared into a conflagration. The sensation engulfed him searing him with passion, desire and a connectedness that was more powerful than anything he had ever experienced. His left palm tingled where their rings were connected.

Dimly, he heard the shaman concluding the ceremony. "Your hearts, your minds and your spirits are now as tightly bound as your hands. What has been joined today cannot be undone. For the rest of your journeys, you are now as one. Go now and enter into your togetherness."

His vision began to swirl as Chakotay left his trance. When he looked around, he was once again sitting in his quarters aboard Voyager. He closed his eyes briefly, savoring the lingering sensations from one of the most incredible vision quests he had ever undertaken. Hearing something, he opened his eyes and looked around. His breath caught as he saw the source of the noise.

"Who are you?" he demanded, springing to his feet.

His intruder smiled and stepped toward him, holding her left palm out to him.

Chakotay glanced down at his own left hand, astonished to see a marking of intertwined circles on his palm. He touched the marking, it was a tattoo, dark brown in color. Then he heard her speak.

"I am your wife, Chakotay."

FINIS


End file.
